- A literally highly modified Rolls Royce Silver Shadow is for sale on eBbay.
- The lifted 1973 sedan uses an L200 chassis and 4cyl turbodiesel engine.
- A famous 1981 Jules Dakar Rolls Corniche rally car inspired the build.
A starting price of over $400,000 for the entry-level 2025 Cullinan would seem to kill any dreams the average car buyer has of owning a Rolls Royce SUV. But here’s one high-riding Roller you can afford to buy – and to run, because this thing does 30 mpg.
Originally a 1973 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow, this once respectable sedan now rides at least a foot closer to the clouds after being fused with the oily bits of a UK Mitsubishi L200, the pickup truck marketed as a Triton or Warrior in some countries.
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It was inspired by the Jules Dakar Corniche, a fiberglass facsimile of a 1970s Rolls Silver Shadow-based coupe that competed in the 1981 Paris Dakar rally, and performed well enough to leave a few more serious entrants looking red-faced before an accident spoiled its run.
The 2007 Mitsubishi L200 hardware on this four-door homage to Jules endows the normally rear-drive Shadow with all-wheel drive and a locking rear differential. It also means the engine bay is no longer home to a mildly-tuned, silky-smooth 6.75-liter V8, and instead features a rowdy but tough four-cylinder turbodiesel fed by a huge fuel tank giving an insane range of 1,240 miles (2,000 km) – perfect for those Dakar runs.
One famous 1959 Rolls Royce advert by Ogilvy claimed the loudest thing in a Rolls Royce was the clock, but we doubt the clock in this Shadow gets a look in with all that compression ignition clatter. But at least it has plenty of low-end torque – it’s going to need it because the Silver Shadow was Rolls’ first unibody car so this monster effectively has two chassis and must weigh an absolute ton.
Inside, it’s mostly stock 1970s Rolls, though the Mitsubishi gauge cluster low down on the console and scruffy driver’s seat won’t win it any concours prizes. But then the asking price is just £18,995 ($25,800).
The eBay advert – first spotted by Silodrome – claims this beast cost £30,000 ($41,000) to build and is capable of 30 mpg (25 mpg US), which makes it around twice as frugal as an original Shadow despite the extra weight and aerodynamic drag. Check out the eBay listing here.
What truck-based, brand-debasing luxury mashup would you build given the necessary time, skills and loss of common sense?
Photos eBay
